On Veterans Day, we celebrate those who have served in our nation's armed forces. Today we throw a salute to the members of the silent service – the United States Navy's submarine force – with a look at memorials and museums.

CALIFORNIA, San Diego

The Maritime Museum of San Diego is home to two submarines: the USS Dolphin, which holds the record for the deepest dive, and the B-39, a Soviet attack submarine designed to track U.S. and NATO warships during the Cold War.

Managed by the U.S. Navy, the Submarine Force Library and Museum features more than 33,000 artifacts, including the USS Nautilus, the first nuclear-powered submarine. Exhibits allow visitors to see midget submarines, peer through working periscopes and visit a control room. Closed Tuesdays; free admission.

Also of interest is the National Submarine Memorial, two miles south of the museum, dedicated to the vessels and their submariners from World War II. A West Coast counterpart is at the Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station.

The 20-foot Bayou St. John was used by the Confederate States of America during the Civil War. The submarine was constructed of riveted iron and propelled by a hand-cranked propeller. To prevent it from falling into the hands of the Union, it was scuttled in the early 1860s and rediscovered during dredging in 1878.

Today it is at the Capitol Park Museum Branch of the Louisiana State Museum with other artifacts from the state's diverse history. Open Tuesdays through Saturdays, free admission.

Commissioned just days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the USS Silversides completed 14 combat patrols during World War II. Today the submarine is the centerpiece of the Great Lakes Naval Memorial & Museum. A wide range of exhibits and displays focuses on marine technology since the 1940s, as well as Great Lakes shipping.

The USS Nautilus permanently docked at the US Submarine Force Museum and Library in Groton, CT. PHOTO COURTESY OF VICTOR-NY
The submarine Nautilus seen in this photo on Jan. 23, 1978, the world's first nuclear-powered vessel. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Silversides (SS-236), a national landmark and a museum, is seen at "full dress ship" in Muskegon, MI. for the US Navy's Submarine Centennial, 3 June 2000. LT. SCOTT MCILNAY, US NAVY
Confederate experimental submarine of the 1860s, New Orleans. Submarine on display at Spanish Fort amusement park about 1895. GEORGE MUGNIER
The U.S. Navy research submarine USS Dolphin. ASSOCIATED PRESS

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